OpenCity Weekly Review

Here’s our weekly review rounding up the best stories and ideas in public space from around the world. This week we bring you public space that meets human needs, a bike lane built out of trash in Toronto, Vancouver’s creative public engagement process, and street art that makes itself invisible.

• Square Public Space with Human Needs
• We’ve all been to really good public spaces, and we’ve all been to really bad public spaces, but it’s not always easy to put your finger on why we feel this way. Lisa Rochon, the architecture critic for the Globe and Mail, takes a shot at this, using the example of a public square in Paris to highlight the need for including a diversity of activity in public spaces. (via The Globe and Mail)

• Re:Cycling to make a Trashy Bike Lane
• When Jenna Morrison was tragically killed by a turning truck on a Toronto street a few weeks ago, it started a fresh debate about cycling safety in the city. Here, cycling activists and bloggers Dave Meslin and James Schwartz create a bike lane out of trash in the spot Morisson was killed, showing that there’s enough room on the road for both cars and cyclists. (via Mez Dispenser and The Urban Country)

• Vancouver’s re:CONNECT, an Open Ideas Competition
• When Vancouver citizens rejected the idea of a freeway running through the city in the 1950s, they were left with two on-ramps that had already been built. Today these viaducts are under intense scrutiny from the planning department as they try to figure out whether the viaducts should stay or go. In order to shake things up, an open ideas competition sought entries from around the world on what should be done with the viaducts and the surrounding land. A very creative way at involving the public in the planning process. (via City of Vancouver)

• Street Art Peels Back Urban Layers
• Usually street art aims to stand out against the urban landscape, but this artist has a different idea in mind. Artist Ceyetano Ferrer uses photo stickers placed on signs, boxes and other objects in the city to essentially camouflage them. The effect is unsettling and beautiful. (via WebUrbanist)

photo of Toronto’s trashy bike lane courtesy of James Schwartz from Flickr (cc)